Pianoforte-action.



PATENTED DEC. 15, 1903.

W. A. EARTHY. PIANOPORTE ACTION.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 6. 1903.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented December 15, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

PIANOFORTE-ACTlON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 747,318, dated December 15, 1903.

Original application filed November 29, 1901, Serial No- 84,105. Divided and this application filed April6, 1903. Serial To all whom it nuty concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM ALFRED EARTHY,a subject of the King of Great Britain, and a resident of l/Valthamstow, in the county of Essex, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Piano-Actions, (for which I have applied for a patentin Great Britain, No. 10,157, dated May 16, 1901, and which is a division of the United States application, Serial No. 84,105, filed November 29, 1901,) of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates to improvements in piano-actions, the object being by an improved arrangement of the parts to provide a simplified action and to render the use of springs in connection with same unnecessary and to provide novel and eflicient means for assisting or effecting escapements, as hereinafter set forth.

In order that this invention may be thoroughly understood, I will now proceed to describe same with reference to the accompanying drawings, in Which- Figure 1 is a side view of the essential parts of the mechanism for striking one note, the rest of the action being merely duplicates of these parts; Fig. 2, a side view illustrating an alternative method of operating the damper when arranged above the striking-hammer; Fig. 3, an enlarged detailed view, hereinafter referred to.

According to this invention, as shown in Fig. 1, the hammer 00 is secured to the hammer butt a and the latter pivoted to the hammer-rail a The hammer-butt is provided with a jointed lifting-rod b, sufficiently weighted, as at 1), preferably by'the insertion of a plug of lead or other suitable material, the lower extremity of the lifting-rod Z) being secured to a wire 6 which is screw-threaded at its extremity and carries an adjustable button b normally resting on astop 0, formed at the extremity of the key 0. Where the damper d is arranged above the striking-hammer Ct, as illustrated, it is secured to a pivoted section g, weighted at its outer extremity g,

and a curved wire 9 secured to the pivoted section g, passes through the hole or perforation formed in an extension 6 of the hammerrest 6 and down through a hole or perforation formed in the guide-strip or fixed section f, while its lower extremity carries an (No model.)

adjustable button g which rests upon the key 0, as shown. The operation of this action is as follows: Upon the key 0 being depressed in the usual way the lifting-rod b is raised by the end of the key 0 and the hammer a driven against the wire w, causing a note to be sounded, while simultaneously with this movement the damper 61 makes contact with the wire to aforesaid. The escapement is effected by means of the button b carried by the extremity of the wire b slipping off the step o,which is insured by curving or bending the wire 12 at h, as shown in the enlarged view, Fig. 3, and passing same through the hole or perforation f in the strip or fixed section f, so that as the wire 19 is raised and passes through the hole or perforation f the curvature h in the said wire causes its lower extremity carrying the button 5 to be pushed off the step c, and the hammer a may be held in check so long as the key 0 is depressed.

In the arrangement shown in Fig. 2 the damper (Z is operated bya Wire 9 connected to the pivoted section g, carrying the damper, said wire g being also secured to a tailpiece 15, carried by the lifting-rod b, as shown, so that when the latter is raised by depressing key a the pivoted section g is simultaneously operated through the medium of the wire g and the damper d drawn out of contact of the wire 10, the escapement in this case being effected similarly as described with reference to Fig. 1.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

In a piano-action, the combination of a wire forming the extremity of the lifting-rod, an adjustable button attached to the end of said wire, a fixed section or strip having a hole therein, a bent or curved portion in said wire passing through and engaging with said hole, a stepped support carried by the end of the key upon which the said button rests, substantially as described and illustrated herein.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 11th day of December, 1902.

WILLIAM ALFRED EARTHY.

Witnesses:

3ENJAM1N CLARK, WILLIAM J onn WEEKS.

ICC 

